The Fort Myers chapter of American Outlaws soccer fan organization vice president James Nunez, left, chants during the World Cup match between Ghana and the U.S.A. at the Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery in Fort Myers Monday.
(Photo:
SARAH COWARD/THE NEWS-PRESS
)

Accompanied by the rasp of a snare drum and clang of a cow bell, a wall-to-wall crowd swathed in red, white and blue sang and danced for the one event, it is said, for which nearly all the world stops.

And parties.

As the U.S. beat Ghana, 2-1, in Brazil in its opening match Monday of the World Cup, the Fort Myers chapter of the U.S. team's nationwide fan group, the American Outlaws, turned the downstairs of Tilted Kilt into its own sweltering, boisterous celebration.

"This," hostess Kaity Rogers, 17, a Fort Myers High School student, said of the bar's most fun crowd since its March opening. "Occasionally we get customers who have Lamborghini's and stuff and we get to take pictures with them. … It's just the vibe."

The mass gathering of more than 400, which forced owners to stop admitting revelers to enter during the first half because of overcrowding, wasn't the only sign of America's growing embrace of the globe's most-popular sport.

Eight years ago, Fort Myers resident Cameron Siggs said he had to beg another area sports bar to tune just one TV to the World Cup to watch the U.S. play. Not so Monday.

"We drove by that same (bar). It was slammed with people all in red, white and blue," said Siggs, 31, among hundreds in Tilted Kilt with U.S. jerseys. "This is different. This is amazing.

"It," Siggs said of efforts to grow the game in the U.S., "has worked."

Before the match touched off, fans flooded by the dozens into Tilted Kilt, co-owned by movie figure Jim Belushi and cousin Chris Karakosta. Some weren't there soon enough.

"I'm pissed," one fan said after missing Clint Dempsey's goal for the U.S. in the first minute, setting off the bar's first beer-spilling, jumping-in-place hugging spree. "I was walking up and all I hear is people yelling."

The Fort Myers chapter of American Outlaws had RSVPs for about 100 Monday. The group had more than 200 before the start of the match alone, and it wasn't the only group in attendance.

"Normally when people tell you they're bringing so many people, you divide that by half," said Tilted Kilt general manager Steve Jacoby. "This is amazing."

Before the half, Karakosta had to tell hostesses to stop allowing newcomers.

"It's too dangerous," said Karakosta, who planned to formally designate the upstairs bar for upcoming American World Cup matches, and perhaps non-American matches, going forward. "We probably lost a hundred people. And they're still coming."

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James Nunez, a founder of the Fort Myers chapter three years ago, wore a homemade American jersey with the name "Fort Myers" and the number 73, signifying the local club as the 73rd chapter of the American Outlaws, which has more than 125 chapters nationwide.

Sure enough, Ghana finally broke the U.S.'s defensive posture to level the match, 1-1, in the 82nd minute, bringing a worried hush over the crowd.

"This is the match they have to win," Nunez said of the U.S. bid to advance through group play. "You gotta believe."

Minutes later, halftime substitution John Brooks scored on a header from a corner kick for the final margin, touching off another mighty celebration not even matched as the game went final, although that was pretty good, too.

"U-S-A! … U-S-A!" the bar roared as one, making for a festive mood looking forward to the U.S.'s next match, at 6 p.m. Sunday against Portugal.